In human courtship, a grimace is not generally something one wants to see from a potential love interest. Not so with animals. Cats, horses, llamas, and giraffes are just some of the animals that exhibit the flehmen response, a grimace-like curling of the upper lip and extension of the neck that facilitates the detection of scents—and pheromones—through the vomeronasal organ located in the roof of the mouth. Where does the name "flehmen" come from?More...

"Tsar Bomba" was the nickname of a hydrogen bomb detonated by the Soviet Union in 1961 that remains the most powerful nuclear weapon ever detonated. The bomb had a yield of 50 megatons, a force equivalent to 1,400 times the combined power of the two nuclear weapons dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in World War II—or approximately 1.4 percent of the power output of the Sun. The resulting seismic shock was measurable even on its third passage around the Earth. Where was Tsar Bomba detonated?More...

Gordon was an American actress and playwright whose career encompassed more than 70 years of stage and film experience. She made her Broadway debut in 1915 as Nibs in Peter Pan. She wrote many plays and collaborated on many successful screenplays, including Adam's Rib, with her husband, the playwright and director Garson Kanin. She won an Academy Award for her performance in Rosemary's Baby and, in 1971, starred in what black comedy film that has since become a cult classic?More...

Quotation of the Day

Better than man doth woman understand children, but man is more childish than woman.

The word diwali means "a row or cluster of lights," and the week-long festivities are illuminated by lamps, fireworks, and bonfires. In northern India, it marks the beginning of the Hindu New Year. In the Punjab and Mauritius, Diwali celebrates the coronation of Rama after his conquest of Ravana. The Jains commemorate the death of their great hero, Mahavira, on this day in the city of Pava in Bihar. Diwali is as important to Hindus as Christmas is to Christians. It is celebrated by the world's 500 million Hindus with gift exchanges, fireworks, and festive (typically vegetarian) meals.More...

A technology start-up working to create a computer system that works like a human brain says it has developed software that can crack CAPTCHAs between 90 and 97 percent of the time. CAPTCHAs—Completely Automated Public Turing tests to tell Computers and Humans Apart—are random words or letters displayed in a camouflaged and distorted fashion to ensure that a human is making an online transaction rather than a computer. Turing tests are intended to test a computer's capacity for humanlike thought and are seen as a measure of artificial intelligence.More...

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